Servant leadership

Effective Leaders Stand Out (part one)

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In preparation for a breakout session at an upcoming conference, I developed a list of ten things a leader can do to stand out and get noticed.  Not in a “look at me!” kind of way, but in a way that will help the leader connect more to others, and to enable others to connect as well.

While all ten pointers are applicable to all potential leaders, there are four that newer, more fast-paced leaders, might relate to more than the experienced.  So, those four this week, the rest next week.  Here we go:

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Effective Feedback is About the Future

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The title is lifted verbatim from the tenets of Manager Tools, and the brilliant minds of Mark Horstman and Michael Auzenne. I encourage you to go to the source if you want to go deeper.

But the short version is this:

Any feedback on any behavior is most helpful to the individual and the organization if it is

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Things successful leaders avoid saying (Part 2)

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Last week, I raised up the value of the principles in “Drive” by Dan Pink.  If, as research has shown, people are motivated by autonomy, then there is a class of words we ought to avoid, as they can crush autonomy.  These may include “ought,” or “must,” but let’s focus on the one that seems to pass judgement:

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Positive leadership isn’t the same thing as “soft” leadership

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Sometime, when people are urged to take a positive approach to leadership, there is some push-back. Some people seem to equate “positivity” with being super-nice, but being kind is much deeper than a spewing of empty compliments like “good job” or “nice work” or “super!”

You can’t be too kind. But, you can be too soft. That is the difference, and I’ll admit that I have had trouble sometimes helping folks understand the difference. I just read Good to Great and have taken quite a liking to Jim Collins’s phrase “rigorous, not ruthless.” This is the message for leaders who would like to be positive. In fact, participants in Group Dynamic workshops are often trained in the art of “behavior –> outcome” statements. (Covered in an earlier post). This focus on behavior, and the high standards of the organization, can be done in a way that is positive, not negative. In a way that is rigorous, not ruthless.

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Effective Leaders Focus on Follower Engagement

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The posts on this blog have been primarily about effective behaviors of good leadership. But leaders do not exist in a vacuum, and it’s important to remember that much of the work in a high-achieving organization is accomplished by the “followers.” The readings on this site focus on things leaders do to keep those followers engaged and motivated. Let’s take a moment to look at the big picture of follower engagement. I know that sounds like a buzzword, but you can call it whatever you like; keeping people happy, firing people up, making people feel loved, keeping them on your side, maintaining loyalty, whatever.

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Effective Leaders Pause and Listen

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This morning, I read an article in T+D by Nance Guilmartin about the importance of cultivating humility in an organization’s leaders.

She poses a great question:

“What don’t I know I don’t know?”

Putting the needs of others first, and acting in support of your organization are key elements of servant leadership. That’s basic.

But there can be an arrogance there, too. You can assume that you know what is needed – because you’re the leader, and you ought to know.

This is what Peter Block refers to as a paternalistic view of leadership — “taking care” of people who “don’t know better” as opposed to a true commitment to learning what is needed.

Example:

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